“There’s a big role technology plays in boosting the overall tenant experience,” said Shelly Just, Associate Vice President, Global Implementation, HqO, in the recent webinar, “Tips to Enhance Tenant Experience & Grow Occupancy in Office Buildings.”
The discussion addressed many pain points commercial real estate (CRE) property owners and operators face surrounding CRE tenant experience. For some, it might seem like a constant cycle of finding new tenants, creating enhanced experiences for them, and retaining their leases. However, this isn’t necessarily the case for CRE properties anymore.
Continue reading for ways technology is “boosting the overall tenant experience” as Just put it, and for helpful insights from experts.
Consider this: Mobile app technology to connect with tenants
“Having a one-stop shop that can go in so many directions has really been such a positive change for us not only from the management side but from the tenant-facing side as well,” said Caralynn Starnes, Vice President, Senior General Manager, One South in Charlotte, NC, when talking about the implementation of mobile technology at the property.
And it wasn’t just Starnes that spoke of the benefits of mobile app technology. Just said, “Any digital platform that connects you as a landlord and owner to 100% of the population is important. Historically, everything was filtered through one to two contacts, and it was difficult to decide what the broader population wanted, how satisfied they were, if they were happy, and what their experience was in the building.”
The solution to that? A mobile app that connects tenants with property teams, and vice versa, for continuous communication.
“It is an amenity for them,” Just said. “It’s one app for the whole property that provides that added layer of convenience and reduces some of the friction they may encounter when they’re considering coming into the office.”
Just added, “[Tenants] are looking to the building environment and experience to play a role in how they attract and retain talent to some degree. So, positioning an app, or technology, as an enablement for them may open opportunities to collaborate with tenants who don’t see it as necessary.”
In fact, showing tenants the added value that a mobile app will bring to them, and their company, is added leverage to hopefully understanding some of their concerns, she added.
Consider this: Streamline communication and collect data
“We’re able to extract quite a bit of data,” said Starnes when referring to the technology her teams use at One South. “Our general use day-to-day, the largest use case, is our ability to communicate and be more closely connected to our tenants.”
By collecting this rich data from tenants, Starnes can create reports and analyze all the information collected. Her reports give her a better idea of how tenants use certain spaces, the satisfaction level with work orders, and even show her what events are being attended, down to the individual tenant.
“Now, we are not just talking to tenant reps but we’re able to reach the individual, which is so important in getting people, and keeping them, informed, involved, and integrated into everything that’s going on,” said Starnes.
“We have the ability to silo down our audience […] and reach folks in several different avenues and directions,” said Starnes. “Were able to see what people are interested in, what they’re responding to when they see notifications, and how they’re interacting with this tenant app, so we know how to better contour the content that goes along with it.”
Consider this: Artificial intelligence for tenant comfort and sustainability
How do you make your buildings sustainable while also ensuring everyone is comfortable? No one wants a warm or cold building, but they do want fresh air. It can be difficult to find that perfect balance between the right temperature while being sustainable.
“That combo is really hard to nail. And it’s beyond the capability of most building management systems (BMS) and beyond the capability of humans – tracking so many data points of temperature, air quality, and energy usage at the same time,” said Tim Curran, President, Property Management Technology Group, JLLT.
The good news, he said, is that the industry can tap into artificial intelligence (AI) to help balance air quality, temperature, and energy usage in commercial buildings. Curran pointed to modern technology as an example.
“It is in the background monitoring millions of data points, 24 hours a day, and it’s fine tuning. It is reprogramming the BMS continuously,” he said.
That means if you’re finding it to be difficult to manage indoor air quality (IAQ) while also adhering to sustainability mandates at your buildings, you’re not alone. Many property owners and operators are struggling with the same thing. However, with AI, you can finally be hands-free and let technology manage sustainability at your buildings.
Improve CRE tenant experience with proptech
Technology is here now, and it is improving CRE tenant experience as we speak. Properties are bringing elevated experience to tenants through proptech.
For Starnes, as a property manager, proptech is serving many purposes including improving work order management, tenant communications, and amenity offerings at One South.
Or, from Curran’s perspective, proptech has become critical to support and maintain green properties. Because the fact of the matter is, tenants today are simply not going to lease brown buildings.
So, while property owners and operators continue to learn about technology capabilities, it’s time to begin implementing such solutions before falling behind. For more information on the use case of technology at office buildings or additional insights from these three experts, watch the full on-demand webinar.
